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Subj: ARES E-Letter September 20, 2017
Path: DB0FFL<OE2XZR<OE5XBR<OE1XAB<HG8LXL<CX2SA
Sent: 170921/1231Z @:CX2SA.SAL.URY.SOAM #:20547 [Salto] FBB7.00e $:20547-CX2SA
From: CX2SA@CX2SA.SAL.URY.SOAM
To : ARES@WW
The ARES E-Letter September 20, 2017
Editor: Rick Palm, K1CE
Special Hurricane Issue: A Busy Season Revs Up
----------------------------------------------
Activations for Hurricane Maria
-------------------------------
As this is written Monday morning, September 18, the VoIP Hurricane Net will
activate starting at 11 AM EDT/1500 UTC until further notice for Hurricane
Maria and impact to the Leeward Islands over the course of the afternoon and
evening. WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio station at the National Hurricane Center
in Miami, will be active starting at 5 PM EDT/2100 UTC Monday evening for
the same purposes.
Maria will likely track toward the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico later
Tuesday and Wednesday with possible tropical storm impacts to some of the
northern Leeward Islands during the day on Tuesday.
Hurricane Jose is expected to bring tropical storm conditions to portions of
the northeast US and potentially the Mid-Atlantic states Tuesday and into
Wednesday. Jose is expected to slowly weaken to a tropical storm over the
next couple of days but has a large tropical storm force wind field
affecting these areas. At this time, the VoIP Hurricane Net will focus on
Hurricane Maria and her impacts on the Caribbean islands since direct
hurricane impacts are expected and local/regional SKYWARN groups will handle
Jose's impacts in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states but any SKYWARN
criteria reports received from Jose by the VoIP Hurricane Net will be given
to the NHC via the VoIP Hurricane Net web form.
Any Amateur Radio operators in the affected area of Maria or with relays
into the affected area of Maria are asked to provide surface and damage
reports into the VoIP Hurricane Net for relay into WX4NHC. The VoIP
Hurricane Net is looking for reports based on the National Weather Service
SKYWARN Reporting criteria, found here.
Any images or videos of wind damage, river/stream/urban/storm surge
flooding, etc., can be sent to this email address: pics@nsradio.org and
credit will be given to the Amateur Radio operator, weather spotter or
individual that took the photos and media and be shared with the Amateur
Radio team at the National Hurricane Center and other agencies and outlets.
Advisories and graphics on Maria and Jose can be viewed on the National
Hurricane Center web site. Reports as obtained via the VoIP Hurricane Net
from amateurs can be found here. Stations outside the affected areas can
listen to the VoIP Hurricane Net on any of the following systems for
listen-only purposes and can connect on either Echolink or IRLP:
*Sky_Gate* Echolink conference node: 868981/IRLP 9252
*KA1AAA* Echolink conference node: 269929
*WASH_DC* Echolink conference node: 6154
See also http://voipwx.org and a YouTube livestream
Director of Operations for the VoIP Hurricane Net Rob Macedo, KD1CY, thanks
all for their continued support of the VoIP Hurricane Net. - VoIP Hurricane
Net bulletin, (9/17/17)
In This Issue:
- Special Hurricane Issue: A Busy Season Revs Up
- Activations for Hurricane Maria
- Hurricanes Harvey and Irma: Historic Storms' Response Coverage
- Hit and Run Driver Stymied by Traffic, ARES
- Two DHS Apps of Interest to ARES Operators
- Letters: Reflections on Hurricane Operations Present and Past
- Psychological First Aid Class Held in Orange County, California
- Major Active Shooter Drill Held in Washington State
- Observations on Hurricane Harvey Response
Hurricanes Harvey and Irma: Historic Storms' Response Coverage
--------------------------------------------------------------
For extensive coverage of ARES© and other amateur service organizations'
responses to the mega-disasters created by hurricanes Harvey and Irma,
please see the following:
Hurricane Irma 2017
http://www.arrl.org/hurricane-irma-2017
Hurricane Harvey 2017
http://www.arrl.org/hurricane-harvey-response
Donate to Ham Aid
https://www.arrl.org/arrl-donation-form
These pages contain news reports, summaries of resources and links to other
key components of the mammoth disasters' response. If you were -- or are --
involved as a volunteer radio operator, please send your reports of activity
to your Section Emergency Coordinator so that the amateur response effort
for these two disasters can be fully documented for numerous purposes,
including lessons learned and spectrum defense in the future. It's important
-- thank you.
A Reminder for All ARRL Volunteers
09/14/2017 -- As requests are received asking for Amateurs to travel to the
areas affected by Hurricane Irma, ARRL officials are reminded that to be
covered under the Volunteer Protection Act or the MoU between ARRL and the
American Red Cross, requests for volunteers must be submitted through
established ARRL/ARES channels.
Volunteers wishing to offer their services in disaster relief need to go
through the proper established channels. Any self-deployment or requests
made outside of the established channels are not covered under ARRL's
agreements and may not be subject to the provisions of the Volunteer
Protection Act. -- Thanks to Dan Henderson, N1ND, ARRL Regulatory
Information Manager; Assistant Secretary
Other Reports
FMRE National Emergency Net Active in Mexico (9/14/17); State of Emergency
Continues in Southern Mexico, Emergency Net Could Activate (9/12/17);
Emergency Net Activated in Wake of Earthquake in Mexico (9/8/17)
Get with the SET: ARRL Simulated Emergency Test (SET) Fall Classic Just Ahead!
Hit and Run Driver Stymied by Traffic, ARES
-------------------------------------------
On Monday, August 21, when the Great American Eclipse had passed over
central Oregon, a mass exodus of vehicles of every description soon crowded
U.S. highway 395, southbound from the John Day/Prairie City area toward the
town of Burns, Oregon, and on across the desert to destinations in Nevada
and California. In late afternoon, Lane Johnson, KE7KIB, a team member of
Harney County ARES in Burns, was monitoring the High Desert Amateur Radio
Group's 2-meter linked repeater system when he heard a mobile call from a
California-bound eclipse watcher, Dustin Yue, W6YUE. Yue reported that he
had witnessed an accident in the column of traffic several miles north of
Burns, in which a green Land Rover had collided with a white Chevy Suburban;
and while people were assisting with the Suburban, the Land Rover had fled
the scene. Unfortunately for the driver, a fast getaway was impossible on
the narrow, two-lane highway in heavy traffic, and Yue said that the Land
Rover was still about fifteen cars behind him, nearing Burns. Johnson asked
him to stand by while he called 911 on the telephone. To simplify the
exchange with the Harney County 911 dispatcher, Johnson relayed her
questions to W6YUE on the radio, then put the phone up to the radio's
speaker so that she could hear his replies directly. It worked beautifully.
Yue gave her the details of the wreck, plus a description and license number
of the Land Rover, and she said she would give the info to the police. In
about twenty minutes, W6YUE called again on the radio and said that the
state police had stopped the Land Rover. Later it was learned that two
persons, one male and one female, were arrested and jailed on hit-and-run
and DUI charges. Justice was done! -- Lane Johnson, KE7KIB, Burns, Oregon
Two DHS Apps of Interest to ARES Operators
------------------------------------------
Here are two good apps from the US Department of Homeland Security Office of
Emergency Communications (DHS-OEC) of interest to ARES members:
https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/enifog-mobile-app
https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/casm-mobile-finder
-- Thanks, Barry Porter, KB1PA, Southern Florida Public Information Officer
[I downloaded the eNIFOG App from the app store -- it's free -- and used it
with success. It's a great resource for any ARES member, and I was pleased
to see the amateur service represented so well in the app's comprehensive
array of reference information. Get it today. -- Ed.]
Letters: Reflections on Hurricane Operations Present and Past
-------------------------------------------------------------
I operated the station WX4NHC at the National Hurricane Center in Miami for
Hurricane Harvey. My slot was the very long Friday night of August 25,
during Harvey's landfall in Texas. As I tuned into the weak signals, I could
sense the stress in the voices I heard through the static of the radio. As
the hurricane winds got closer to land, fewer and fewer signals were heard
and then there were none. I assumed operators in the storm's path lost
power, antennas or both.
But I could not escape the images in my mind of what they were going
through: the howling of the wind, the darkness, the crashing noises, the
crying children, remembering 25 years ago when Hurricane Andrew took the
roof off my house.
I watched the back-to-back forecasts and satellite images as Harvey rapidly
strengthened from barely a Tropical Storm into a major Category Four
hurricane in a very short time. As Harvey approached the Texas coast that
night, we had a sense of the devastation that would result from the 130 MPH
winds and possible storm surge. But when it slowed down, and then stalled
over the Rockport and Houston area, the rain forecasts went off the charts.
The flooding would be historic.
The reports we receive over Amateur Radio sometimes fill in gaps in weather
data and are valuable ground level eye witness reports. We are very grateful
for the support of our volunteer WX4NHC operators, the Hurricane Watch Net
and the VoIP Hurricane Net and for all the amateur operators who sent
reports from the affected area and for those who relayed them -- stations
throughout the country. The work I witnessed by the Hurricane Specialists
and National Hurricane Center staff was extraordinary. The ongoing work of
the First Responders and volunteers rescuing people from their flooded homes
was inspiring. Everyone worked hard and worked together to help save lives!
Our thoughts and prayers remain with the people affected by Hurricane
Harvey. -- Julio Ripoll, WD4R, Assistant Manager, National Hurricane Center
station WX4NHC
Psychological First Aid Class Held in Orange County, California
---------------------------------------------------------------
Recently, members of Orange County, California's Hospital Disaster Support
Communications System (HDSCS) had the opportunity to attend a class on
"Psychological First Aid" put on by the Behavioral Medicine section of the
Orange County Health Care Agency. The class addressed not only ways to deal
with the psychological issues of victims in a major emergency but also
understanding that the caregivers and helpers in those situations can often
become victims themselves. Ways to deal with those issues were provided.
In another presentation, HDSCS member Dr. Sam Stratton, W5AGX, Medical
Director of Orange County Emergency Medical Services, will discuss "The
Hospital: It's Not What You See on TV" on Saturday, September 16 at the ARRL
Southwestern Division Convention. Dr. Stratton will share five key factors
that are crucial for Amateur Radio operators to understand when providing
communications support to medical facilities. - HDSCS News report
Major Active Shooter Drill Held in Washington State
---------------------------------------------------
On Thursday, August 24, the Olympic Peninsula in the Northwest corner of
Washington State came alive in preparation for an Active Shooter Exercise.
The exercise took place on the Peninsula College campus in Port Angeles,
Washington, and was planned and coordinated by the Clallam County Sheriff's
Department and the Port Angeles Police Department. This exercise was the
largest of its kind conducted on the peninsula, and included participation
from federal, state, county, city, and tribal authorities and public service
organizations all over the area, including ARES.
Since every aspect of the exercise was exact and real in every detail,
communications between the people controlling the exercise was assigned to
the Clallam County ARES group who are a part of the Sheriff's Emergency
Services Unit. This kept all normal emergency communications resources open
for official use. ARES operators were assigned to man the "hospital" and
"reunification" centers that were off site. On site ARES operators were
assigned to the "staging area" and also were assigned to shadow the "college
safety manager" and the "exercise commander." Some of the members and their
families were also volunteer victims and witnesses. ARES personnel are proud
to have been part of this exercise and lessons were learned that will help
when our services are needed again. -- Joe Wright, KG7CWG, Clallam County ARES
Observations on Hurricane Harvey Response
-----------------------------------------
The public safety agencies along the Gulf coast have done a lot over the
past ten years to make their communications systems - including radio and
Internet -- more robust and hardened for integrity in major storm events.
Their efforts, combined with the FCC requirement for narrow banding and the
addition of digital modes at the same time have made these systems more
complex - yielding more possible points of failure. But in the end, in both
the greater Houston and Golden Triangle portions of the Texas Gulf Coast,
Hurricane Harvey did not knock out, nor significantly impact the cellular
telephone and data networks or the 700 MHz and 800 MHz trunked public safety
communication service systems. There were some threats but no significant
impact. ARES/RACES operators were prepared, in place, staffed and ready to
go, if needed.
My concern is that not only will our served agencies find themselves lured
into a false sense of security, so will the Amateur Radio community. We
amateur operators have the ability to, and must control one side of that
equation: We can continue to train, practice and exercise. We can complete
the courses Introduction to Emergency Communication (EC-001); Public Service
and Emergency Communications Management for Radio Amateurs (EC-016); PR-101:
ARRL Public Relations (EC-015). We can take and complete the FEMA
Independent Study (IS) courses IS-100, IS-200, IS-700, IS-800 and IS-026.
Both ARES and RACES leaders should add IS-300 and IS-400 courses to their
resume. All should get into a DHS AUXCOMM class. Leaders should try to take
the DHS COML course even if they never get DHS certified. As PIO's who also
wear an ARES/RACES hat, in addition to the PR-101 course offered by the
ARRL, they should take the FEMA IS-042 and the GS-289, GS-290, and GS-291
courses.
In addition to the educational portion described above, we also need to
continue to practice our on air skills. Personally, I find that most nets
are not fulfilling their potential in the practicing of emergency/disaster
response communications skills. To help nets meet their potential, one
action they could take is to hold at least one monthly session where all
operators take their go kits to the field -- even if it's just the Wal-Mart
parking lot down the street -- and check into the net. Not every ham can "go
portable," but the more who can, increase the utility of our organizations.
That utility is important when it comes to emergencies and disasters such as
what we have just gone through here in the Houston area where maybe as many
as 1 out of 6 homes were rendered uninhabitable.
Also, net check-ins, whether novices or veterans, sometimes do not listen to
the instructions of the net control station. We were given two ears and one
mouth to be exercised proportionally. During the Harvey disaster, I observed
that net operators and net control stations could use more net discipline
for great efficiency and efficacy.
The lowest common denominators for ARES/RACES emergency/disaster response
are still the workhorse V/UHF FM and 40/75 meter phone bands. While the
digital modes can certainly bring value, they cannot replace our lowest
common denominators as not every ham is so equipped. As our served agencies'
communications systems have become more complex with more possible points of
failure, we do not need to repeat that model less we set up to fail as well.
Outside of the major metropolitan areas many of these more elaborate digital
modes do not see the light of day.
Every ARES/RACES/CERT responder needs to have a "brag book." This phrase was
coined by a friend and new ham who says every amateur licensee should have a
book with copies of any license, I-D, certificates, etc., in it to present
to a served agency official or other person who may have a need to review
their credentials.
Now we've done our part -- how do we get our served agencies on board? We
can't force them to do anything and the more we try to force ourselves upon
them the more likely the chance to alienate them. It is my opinion that
nothing does more to gain their respect than
documented training from recognizable organizations. Understanding your
served agencies' communications systems, whether a simple 5 channel narrow
band FM radio or complex multi-site 700 MHz P25 protocol system, and being
able to discuss where Amateur Radio can fit into their system to either back
up or take load off their system helps.
Opening up your brag book and explaining that you understand ICS protocol,
and our place in the system and are continuing to learn more, all help.
Volunteer to participate in any of their drills, and not just as a radio
operator. My city runs several a year as we are in a large petrochemical
complex and I've served everywhere from in the EOC to an observer/evaluator
in the field.
The bottom line is that every region of the country will be different and
there is no one simple answer. We all need to find what works best for our
particular environments. - Mike Urich, KA5CVH, Assistant SEC and PIO, ARRL
South Texas Section, Harris County ARES,
Interview: ARRL Public Information Officer Mike Urich, KA5CVH, Describes the
Situation in Harris County, Texas, during storm Harvey (8/29/17)
_______________
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